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eupilgrim11:10 UTC19 Jul 2010

Hi all, just posting my today's experience of getting Uzbek visa at their consulate in Almaty.

Location is the same as in 2007, 4th edition of Lonely Planet (and in Google Maps), close to Gorky Park.

I showed up in the morning only to be shown a notice in very bad English saying foreigners should show up at 14:00 straight. So I showed up at 2 and in a few minutes a policeman comes out reading names of people to go inside and show their documents. So I went to him to put me on the list, as a foreigner he will typically let you go sooner than others - make sure you talk to him as soon as he comes out, don't wait until he asks you what you want.

So when it's your turn, you go into the little house and the consul (or his assistant) is sitting there and you present your documents. I'm from a country that needs LOI, so I had all the basic documents and photo ready. He told me since I was requesting a double entry 1 month visa, the fee would be $120. I was surprised and told him that I do not need the express service and am fine with the usual delivery. So he said the fee would be $85. So I asked him when it would be done and he said today. So obviously asking for $120 seemed like a way for him to extort some cash if the non-urgent service would be done on the same day as well.

So I went outside to wait until I'm called into the other house. There I talked to a Belgian girl who has applied without LOI 1.5 weeks ago and this was her 2nd time there. When she applied she was told to come in a week , but she showed up and the visa wasn't done. So she showed up today. She went in first and when she got back, she told me she still didn't get the visa and was told to come by the end of the week - crazy.

Expecting the worst, I went in and waited a bit, then the same guy who met me up front called my name. I showed him my documents and he came back in 5 minutes asking for $85. I handed them over, he then came back in another 5 minutes and handed me back my passport with a visa!

Total time spent was 2.5 hours.

Moral of the story - even if you're from a country that doesn't need LOI, if you are on a tight schedule and cannot afford coming back to the same embassy every couple of days to make sure your visa is ready - just spend the extra money and get an LOI in advance. I got mine through Stantours in 2 weeks. They do everything via email, so no need to go anywhere.

bassalegboy11:05 UTC20 Jul 2010

Good advice. I did the same and used Stantours. I think other companies can provide too, Advantours?
Never had to wait long except in Tashkent for a Kyrgyzstan visa but I was spending a week there anyway, so not a problem

seblindstrom18:12 UTC24 Sep 2010

Hey!
Here is our blog entry that explains what you should do to get your Uzbek Visa in Almaty.
[http://whattookyousolong.org/2010/09/how-to-get-an-uzbekistan-visa-in-almaty-kazakhstan/]

Enjoy and if you have any questions you can email me at sebastian@whattookyousolong.org
(We are in Khiva, uzbekistan now)

Uzbekistan Consulate in Almaty Country forums / Central Asia
eupilgrim11:10 UTC19 Jul 2010	Hi all, just posting my today's experience of getting Uzbek visa at their consulate in Almaty. Location is the same as in 2007, 4th edition of Lonely Planet (and in Google Maps), close to Gorky Park. I showed up in the morning only to be shown a notice in very bad English saying foreigners should show up at 14:00 straight. So I showed up at 2 and in a few minutes a policeman comes out reading names of people to go inside and show their documents. So I went to him to put me on the list, as a foreigner he will typically let you go sooner than others - make sure you talk to him as soon as he comes out, don't wait until he asks you what you want. So when it's your turn, you go into the little house and the consul (or his assistant) is sitting there and you present your documents. I'm from a country that needs LOI, so I had all the basic documents and photo ready. He told me since I was requesting a double entry 1 month visa, the fee would be $120. I was surprised and told him that I do not need the express service and am fine with the usual delivery. So he said the fee would be $85. So I asked him when it would be done and he said today. So obviously asking for $120 seemed like a way for him to extort some cash if the non-urgent service would be done on the same day as well. So I went outside to wait until I'm called into the other house. There I talked to a Belgian girl who has applied without LOI 1.5 weeks ago and this was her 2nd time there. When she applied she was told to come in a week , but she showed up and the visa wasn't done. So she showed up today. She went in first and when she got back, she told me she still didn't get the visa and was told to come by the end of the week - crazy. Expecting the worst, I went in and waited a bit, then the same guy who met me up front called my name. I showed him my documents and he came back in 5 minutes asking for $85. I handed them over, he then came back in another 5 minutes and handed me back my passport with a visa! Total time spent was 2.5 hours. Moral of the story - even if you're from a country that doesn't need LOI, if you are on a tight schedule and cannot afford coming back to the same embassy every couple of days to make sure your visa is ready - just spend the extra money and get an LOI in advance. I got mine through Stantours in 2 weeks. They do everything via email, so no need to go anywhere.
bassalegboy11:05 UTC20 Jul 2010	Good advice. I did the same and used Stantours. I think other companies can provide too, Advantours? Never had to wait long except in Tashkent for a Kyrgyzstan visa but I was spending a week there anyway, so not a problem	1
seblindstrom18:12 UTC24 Sep 2010	Hey! Here is our blog entry that explains what you should do to get your Uzbek Visa in Almaty. [http://whattookyousolong.org/2010/09/how-to-get-an-uzbekistan-visa-in-almaty-kazakhstan/] Enjoy and if you have any questions you can email me at sebastian@whattookyousolong.org (We are in Khiva, uzbekistan now)	2

Uzbekistan Consulate in Almaty